Dacor Reg. people.....

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8dust

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Nashville's North Shore
So, to start off with, Im an inherently “retro” kinda guy. Not hard-core vintage, but I started diving in ’82, and that’s pretty well where my head is at. All the new high-tec stuff really doesn’t interest me much. Tried on a new top of the line BC vest the other day at the LDS just for fun, and felt like I was headed off to outer space, not for a swim. Very happy to keep using my Scubapro backpack…. ANYWAY, I digress… point of the story is, that I have always dove U.S. Divers' regs., they just keep on ticking… but, I have also always secretly admired those shiny chrome-face Dacor regs.,…. Then, along came Craig’s list….
Just picked up a set of 2 Dacor Pacer XL regs, good looking 350 first-stage, good looking DG/PG console, and a LP inflator hose, all in excellent looking shape, and reportedly serviced yearly until 5 years ago and then not used since.

Yes yes yes, I know servicing and parts can/will be a problem, but there isn’t a bit of corrosion showing anywhere and I bought the lot for what the LP hose would cost new…. So I feel pretty good about it.

All of this build up gets me to my question: both regs. Have plastic clamps on the face labeled “purge button depressor” … “ install for storage, remove for diving” *** ?
Never seen one of ‘em there. Are the internal springs or diaphragms so delicate you need these? Or what’s the purpose? As you may figure, I haven’t ever serviced my own regs., so I’m not totally sure about what the guts look like, and what the advantage of this might be. Also makes me wonder how my USD regs. are different enough as to not require.

Any information would be helpful and appreciated.
Prob. time to start learning how to do a rebuild if I come across someone who has some parts on the back of a shelf somewhere.

Thanks in advance!
 
I have one of those. Neat idea, basically when not in use you install it over the purge button. That intern holds the second stage valve open. The second stage valve is nothing more than a small rubber disk that is pressed against a metal or plastic orifice and held there by spring pressure. It will after a while take a set and deform if kept in the closed position. The idea was to hold the rubber disk off the seat while not in use, keeping it from deforming and therefore it would last longer. With annual servicing it really did not do much since the seat is replaced at service anyway. By the way, the USD and Dacor second stages of that era look darn near the same on the inside (as do most lower end modern regs- just in plastic). So much so, the LP seat that the clip was to protect is the same type -size/shape/material in both regs and is pretty much a standard size in 90% of the older second stages and modern low end stages as well.

The second stage is no problem to service, all the parts are pretty much generic. The first stage is going to be the problem although I may know of a source if you want to do the work yourself.
 
How standard is the 2nd. stage diaphram? I know of a couple that just got tossed in a box when repair parts for Dacor were said to be unavailable. I sort of like the metal 2nds.
 
I also obtained two shiny Dacor pacers and a 900 first stage which were supposedly just serviced... I gassed them up and one of the pacers freeflows/leaks a bit and the other works fine. I suspect the seat has deformed from sitting w/o the clip you mentioned.

Nearest dive shop is pretty far away and I would like to learn to service this myself. Can it be adjusted or do I have to get a new seat? Oh, I also have an old olympic that works well but is a bit dirty... Do you know if that seat may work?
 
I have an old Dacor rig that is still in good working condition. First stage is a 350---only problem with it is a very small leak on the side opposite yoke, not bad, just a few bubbles, probably just a worn out seal or something simple. Shiny chrome 2nd stage--Pacer XL--this one is in great shape. Still breathes great and no leaks. Octopus--it is a Dacor, not sure about the model. It is the one with the yellow/green plastic cover over the front of the second stage with the exhaust vents on either side. The SPG and depth guage console are in great shape as well, and so is the inflator hose. I have used them in my pool recently, but don't dive with them anymore because I bought a new set regs last year. If any of you guys are interested let me know.
 
How standard is the 2nd. stage diaphram? I know of a couple that just got tossed in a box when repair parts for Dacor were said to be unavailable. I sort of like the metal 2nds.

I THINK that USD Conshelf diaphrams will fit but I will have to check tonight. Most of the metal second stages of that era are very similar.

I also obtained two shiny Dacor pacers and a 900 first stage which were supposedly just serviced... I gassed them up and one of the pacers freeflows/leaks a bit and the other works fine. I suspect the seat has deformed from sitting w/o the clip you mentioned.

Nearest dive shop is pretty far away and I would like to learn to service this myself. Can it be adjusted or do I have to get a new seat? Oh, I also have an old olympic that works well but is a bit dirty... Do you know if that seat may work?

First off I would check the IP to make sure it's correct, it may be creeping and it's not uncommon for a second stage to need a little tweeking after a couple of weeks if the tech set it close in an attempt to get the best performance out of it. So they may just need adjusting, simple to do- the procedure varies a little depending on the reg. Some have adjustable orifices and other don't, the procedure varies depending on the type of orifce. It's a good chance that the seats are OK but if they are not, it was/is common practice to turn them over and use the back side. The seats are standard size so seats out of most any older or low end reg will work. SP 380s,190s and Sherwood seconds use the same LP seat. I see SW second stage kits on Ebay for a few dollars some times. It is also possible to make your own. With a simple hole punch and a strip of rubber you can make dozens of them. The first one will cost $20 but the next 100 or so will be free.
 
I used to have a Dacor Pacer 900 and whatever its precursor model was. That thing weighed a ton, but breathed nicely. I got tired of lugging it around though, and I tossed it, a pair of Force Fin Tan Deltas, and a few other items in the trash, back before ebay.
 
When I started diving four years ago I was given a set of Dacor XLE's and some other stuff by my cousin's widow. Not knowing any better I took the regs to the local (50 miles away) LDS. The reg man there was tickled to death to work on them. Said it was like working on a new 1957 Buick. He had most of the parts on hand and those that he didn't he was able to swap out of reg kits for other brand regs. Like mentioned above he just flipped the low pressure seat since the other side was like new. I used these regs for about two years when I got the plastic urge. Since Leisure Pro sells cheap new regs for about what the service cost is on an old one I retired the Dacors. In the meantime I got the Dacor bug and bought a bunch of sets off of Ebay just to fiddle around with them. Bought a half dozen rebuild kits for both the first and second stages. They are in a box in the closet. I plan to put them on Ebay one of these days. Included with them is a NEW XLE, never been out of the bag.
 
Thanks for the input so far guys. I will see what I can find out. Anyone have a service manual for these? The best I found was for a Dacor "Classic" from 2002. Is the Pacer functionally the same? I haven't torn anything apart yet, but it looks awfully similar.

I like the solid feel of these old regs... I think I could back over them with a truck and they would still work :)

Oh, and Garrobo, be sure to let us know first when you want to get rid of those parts kits, in case something goes wrong that we can't fix/fabricate ourselves :)
 
Goto Gogleand type in "Dacor Pacer" or "Dacor XLE". There's a lot of info there. Also goto Ebay and go the same thing. Sports, watersports, scuba, regulators, Dacor.
 
https://www.shearwater.com/products/peregrine/

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